Problems with Evolutionary Ethics
“Our moral awareness has a robust framework anchored in a good, loving and just
God.” (McQuilkin and Copan 2014, 182-183). To say that ethical values and duties
evolved undermines that quality of the human construct. For example, I cannot say
that “I ought to love my wife” based on an illogical ideology of naturalism. I know that
my wife has value and worth as a human being and a female. If I say that my love for
her is based on an ethical evolutionary development, then what determines the
definition of love? What exactly is love by evolutionary standards? We cannot say that
genetics is the driving force behind the idea of human worth and value because the
standards are ambiguous and subjective. For example, if I say that I love my wife, do I
mean I love to hate my wife, or I love my wife to death-literally? How absurd to think
that any human being could and would view this as a way for a moral and ethical
value. I believe without the existence of God, a false view of human dignity and a value
and worthlessness toward others are plausible. Since that is not the case (I believe
God does exist), then it seems to me that intrinsically and innately, we value human
dignity based on moral values, and duties by the standard of God, not humans.
If evolutionary process dictates the human dignity, value and worth, then what is the
origin and bases for this belief system? If genetics is the bases, then that means
humans are meaningless, valueless, worthless, and mindless since genetics in and of
itself has no standards or understanding of the human construct on all levels
(emotionally, intellectually, philosophically, spiritually, etc.). The phrase “only the
strong survive” is basically the contention from an evolutionary perspective. To take it
one step further, that is the same as saying that humans are animals and therefore,
we view life as a survival of the fittest/every man for him or herself. How is that
possible for a civil society and cultural sense of worth, dignity and value for loving
people, helping, and caring for people? It does not care for human beings since it is no
respecter of man. So, the notion of an evolutionary ethical system that governs
people cannot be a valid standard for individuals, society and culturally. At best is
proves the existence of God when viewed through the lens of objective moral values
and duties. In other words “The fact that we trust that our minds are not
systematically deceiving us makes better sense if we have been designed by a
truthful, rational God.” (McQuilkin and Copan 2014, 181).
Bibliography
McQuilkin, Robertson and Paul Copan: An Introduction to Biblical Ethics: Walking in
the Way
i i i i i i i i i i of Wisdom. Illinois: IVP Academic, 2014).
